NCJ Number
118957
Journal
Sociological Spectrum Volume: 9 Issue: 3 Dated: (Fall 1989) Pages: 301-319
Date Published
1989
Length
19 pages
Annotation
The theoretical model proposed by the authors is that negative self-concepts lead to poor academic performance and a diminished sense of purpose in life which, in turn, lead to various forms of deviant behavior.
Abstract
A survey of students was conducted in junior and senior high schools in a western city of approximately 250,000 population. Questionnaires were returned by 9,752 students, representing an overall response rate of 77.5 percent. Major dependent variables were such forms of deviance as delinquency, alcohol use, drug use, and eating disorders. Independent variables were self-confidence and self-esteem measures. Academic performance was more important than a sense of purpose in life as a mediating variable for alcohol use, but purpose in life was a more important mediator for eating disorders. In general, poor academic performance and a diminished sense of purpose in life affected adolescent deviance. Demographic variables such as gender, age, social class, and ethnicity did not appreciably affect relationships between self-concept, academic performance, and purpose in life as intervening variables and adolescent alcohol and drug use, delinquency, and eating disorders. 26 references, 3 tables, 2 figures. (Author abstract modified)